As Baehee clicked ‘Publish’ on her latest YouTube video, she let out a sigh, leaning back in her computer chair. She’d had her channel for a good five years, and she had gained a more than decent following. The teen had started out covering songs and dances from her favorite artists, but she had added the occasional vlog and makeup tutorial two years earlier because of the overwhelming amount of requests she had received. Apparently, the secret to her eye makeup was the eighth wonder of the world.

Baehee was proud of all that she had accomplished on her own, but she still wasn’t satisfied with where she was. She had been auditioning for different entertainment companies, big and small, for years, but for whatever reason, her success online couldn’t quite translate to the real world.

Not one company had accepted her.

It was hardly a matter of her skill at this point, it was a matter of her pride. She knew she was talented, she knew that she had what it took to be an idol, but no company had ever given her the time of day at auditions. She wasn’t trying to be arrogant, but it made no sense to her. Lots of companies debuted groups that had a weaker member, but not one of them could find a place for her? It was stupid to keep dwelling on it, Baehee knew, but she couldn’t help but wonder what it was she was lacking.

“Baehee, mail for you!”

With a groan, she swiveled her chair around and headed downstairs.

 

☆

 

“I don’t want to go in.”

“Seyun, we kind of have to go in,” Chanyeon replied with sigh.

The two had been called out of their dance lessons to speak privately with the CEO of their company. Genius Entertainment, while not big by any stretch of the imagination, was known for only debuting female acts over the years and showing preference for hiring female staff members. Seeing a male walking around the building was a rarity, and most didn’t stay long. The CEO, Bae Haneul, was known as the maknae of one of Korea’s first successful girl groups, Rebelle. After their split in early 2001, she had opened her own company and gone solo at twenty years old. Despite expectations for her to slowly fade away, Haneul had built up Genius Entertainment to be a company in which young women could build careers in the entertainment industry without having to ever think of relying on sponsors. Although she was only thirty-five, Haneul had made it known that she was strong-willed woman who never let her staff and talent be taken advantage of, and anything she wanted, she got.

While they had wasted no time in getting themselves to the main building, the two girls were awkwardly standing outside of their CEO’s door because the younger of the two was worried. “But what if she’s going to kick us out?” Seyun asked in return, her face full of nervousness. “All of our projects keep getting scrapped, and we’ve already been here for four years—” 

“Seyun, breathe,” Chanyeon put her hands on the younger’s shoulders. “She’s not going to kick us out of the company.” Sure, the thought had crossed her mind after a few… less than promising evaluations, but there were two months until she would hit five years in the company and only one month left for Seyun. Genius wouldn’t keep them that long without reason, would they? She shook her head, “You’re too good of a dancer for that, and I like to think that I don’t absolutely at singing enough to get booted out.”

“But my singing…” Seyun looked down.

“It’s getting better,” Chanyeon gave her a reassuring smile. “The only thing holding you back is your confidence, but I believe in you.”

Seyun gave her a small smile, “…Thanks.”

“No problem,” Chanyeon grinned. “Ready?” At Seyun’s silent nod, she knocked on the door.

 

☆

 

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay by yourself?”

Lu Huan rolled her eyes at the concern, “Yes, Mom, I’m sure. Besides, it’s not just me, Yixiu said she’s going to be on the show too.” “

Yixiu isn’t in the same company as you though. None of the girls you recorded with will be coming over from Beijing to participate with you.”

“Well, yeah, that’s because I’m already here for school, and I’m one of the only trainees at Ringleader that can speak Korean,” she explained calmly. “It’s not going to be that bad, really. And maybe a Korean company will pick me up after it’s all over.”

“Huan, we already talked about this…”

Lu Huan frowned, “That’s why I’m here, isn’t it? To find a more stable company?” Why else would she leave her family and move to Korea almost immediately after graduating? Sure, she already belonged to a company back in China, but she hadn’t really done anything with them yet. In hopes of keeping her closer to home, her parents had convinced her to join the company in her final year of high school, and she’d recorded some songs with a group of girls, but none of them had been released.

She was getting impatient, and so she had moved to Korea in hopes of finding a better training system. She was still under a contract with her company, but because she was in Korea, she couldn’t do much with them. However, that quickly changed when she had gotten word that she would be representing Ringleader in a Korean survival show with too many trainees to count. She didn’t know how many foreign companies would be participating, but she knew she would stand out because there couldn’t possibly be that many. That was a good thing though. 

“Yes, that is why you’re there, and your father and I will continue to support you.”

She smiled, “Thanks… I won’t let you down, I promise.”

 

☆

 

“Not that I’m worried, but how young do you think everyone’s going to be?” Minseon asked as she knelt down to tighten her laces.

Yixiu snorted softly as she marked her choreography in front of the mirrors, “You sound pretty worried to me.” At the severely unimpressed look the elder girl gave her, Yixiu simpered in reply. “You’re only nineteen, I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

“She’s twenty, you’re thinking in Chinese again,” Kyungsoon informed her, stretching off to the side, out of Yixiu’s way.

“Okay, but still,” Yixiu persisted. “At least you’re not twenty-five.”

Minseon rolled her eyes, “I feel so blessed.”

“Your youth is a precious time you’re supposed to treasure,” Yixiu gave a sagely nod. “You are very blessed indeed.”

Minseon chuckled, “I guess you’re right.” She headed over to the sound system, “But if I want to actually enjoy my youth, I need to debut before I turn twenty-five, so we need to practice for the company evaluations. I don’t want to be stuck in this dungeon until my thirties.”

SPY Entertainment rarely debuted new acts. The timing of trainees who joined the company had to be near perfect, or they would be stuck as trainees forevermore. Minseon may not have been old, but she knew she was nearing the peak age for debut, and she didn’t want to miss it. There was talk of the next SPY girl group debut coming up, and if she was passed over, Minseon didn’t know what she would do. She had joined the company a few months after the previous girl group had debuted, three years earlier, and she knew that the next group would probably be her last chance with her current company.

“Minseon-eonnie, you can start whenever you’re ready,” Kyungsoon said, bringing the elder out of her thoughts. She and Yixiu were already in place, waiting for Minseon to join them.

“… Yeah, right, sorry about that,” Minseon blinked owlishly as she returned to reality. She the sound system and skipped to their evaluation song. In the few seconds before the music started, she found her place amongst the other two, determined to perfect the performance.

SPY’s newest girl group might be her last chance, but it wasn’t her only chance. This show was another chance to debut, and she wasn’t going to let it out of her grasp.

 

☆

 

“You should probably lay off a little, Jongmi.”

“I can’t afford to, you know that,” the other girl replied as she stretched after practice. “Our evaluation has to be perfect.”

“Do you want your waist to give out before we get there?” Junmae looked at the other girl in concern as she gathered her things. “It’s one thing to represent our company well, and it’s another thing to die trying.”

Jongmi laughed, “I’m not going to die.” When Junmae continued to look at her pointedly, she sighed. “Really, I’m fine. There’s no way my waist will give me any trouble during the show. I’ve been doing all my stretches, and I’ve got more than enough heat patches.” She smiled at the other warmly, “Thank you for caring though. I appreciate it.”

“Kim Jongmi, I have known you for five years,” Junmae said. “If I didn’t care about you, who else would?”

“Monggu would care about me,” Jongmi nodded sagely.

Junmae snorted, “That’s because you feed him.” She walked over to the younger girl and offered her a hand, “Speaking of food, let’s go get something to eat. I’m starving, and I bet you are too.” When Jongmi looked unsure, Junmae yanked her up onto her feet. “Come on, living up to the illustrious Crown Entertainment makes you work up an appetite. I’m buying.”

Jongmi followed the older girl out of the dance studio, still running through their performance for the evaluation in her head. Everything had to be perfect because they were from Crown, and if the articles that had started circulating held any truth to them, they were going to be the biggest company showing up. All eyes would be on them whether or not they wanted it to happen, and Jongmi really didn’t want it to happen. Unfortunately, heavy is the head that wears the crown, and everyone would be looking to see if they could bear its weight.

Jongmi really hoped they could.

 

☆

 

The first day of filming came faster than Jonghae had expected it to. When she had first received the invitation in the mail, she hadn’t believed it. Joining a survival show had never been on her bucket list, but she wasn’t about to turn the opportunity down. She wanted to debut more than anything, and even if she would be going on the show without a company backing her, she would do her best. Even if she couldn’t make it into the final lineup, maybe she could get enough exposure through the show that she could join a company.

After she did an introduction interview that she was sure wouldn’t be aired, Jonghae wandered over to the hallway leading to the main filming area. Stopping at the mirror right before the entrance, she gave her clothes one last look over before giving a determined look to her reflection, “You can do this.”

Walking into the filming area, she was shocked to see the plethora of girls sitting in a pyramid formation. Bowing awkwardly and giving a greeting to the large group, Jonghae scanned the rows for a seat she could take. Her eyes caught someone waving at her from the upper rows, and she gaped. “… Byun Baehee?”

Perched comfortably in a studded 3 chair, Baehee beckoned her to up the empty 2 chair next to her. Jonghae honestly didn’t know the other girl that well, but she would accept any familiarity she could get with open arms. Wearing a grateful smile, she quickly climbed the stairs to the top and sat next to the other girl.

“You have no idea how glad I am that you showed up,” Baehee said, letting out a relieved sigh. “There aren’t as many individual trainees here as I thought there would be.”

“You’re the only person I recognize, so I have to say the same,” Jonghae admitted. With a shy smile, she added, “Your Oh My Girl cover was amazing, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Baehee gave a laugh. She nudged the other playfully, “I felt like I was in heaven when I listened to your cover of ‘Breathe.’ I had it looped for days.”

Jonghae flushed, “That means a lot coming from you, Baehee.”

The other snorted in reply, “It really shouldn’t. You’re just as good as I am,” Baehee nodded. She shrugged, “I’ve just been doing it longer.”

Before Jonghae could reply, a girl walking past them caught her eye. She and Baehee both turned to see the girl go past their row up to the small sofa marked 1. The girl gave them a small smile before bowing to the large group of girls staring up at her. “It’s the only seat left, so I guess I’ll just sit here…” Her cheeks were red as she sat down, trying to avoid everyone’s eyes.

“When I walked in, I told myself I was going to sit there, but then, I got too nervous,” Baehee admitted to Jonghae sheepishly. She turned back to the girl and gave her a friendly smile, “I’m Byun Baehee, and you must be bravery incarnate.”

The girl shook her head, letting out an awkward laugh, “Not really, I was just the last one to get here.”

Jonghae raised a brow when she heard her voice, “Are you Korean?”

She shook her head again, “Nope, I’m from China.”

Baehee’s eyes widened, “People are coming in all the way from China? Being an individual trainee doesn’t seem that bad anymore,” she laughed. “Your Korean is basically perfect though! I can barely tell you have an accent.”

“Thanks, I went to an international school back in Beijing,” she smiled. “By the way, my name’s Lu Huan.” “

I’m Jonghae, nice to meet you,” she smiled at the other brightly.

“The three of us should stick together if we can,” Baehee told the other two. “It’ll be nice to know that someone has our back, don’t you think?”

Lu Huan nodded, “We should… Uh, how old are you guys?” she asked curiously. “I’m twenty.”

“Ah, LuHuan-eonnie!” Baehee’s eyes went wide, and she bowed sheepishly. “Sorry, I forgot to ask.” She gestured between herself and Jonghae, “We’re both eighteen.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Lu Huan laughed. “We’re all nervous on the first day.”

Jonghae grinned as Baehee continued to apologize. Her nerves were slowly fading away, and she didn’t feel lonely anymore. Maybe going on a survival show wouldn’t be that bad.

 

☆

 

“Does anyone else think Kim Dojung is kind of… needlessly greasy?” Minseon whispered. Even though their mics had been removed when they went to go change for the company evaluations, she could never be too careful.

“Me,” Kyungsoon whispered back. She made a face, “I thought it would be an all-female training staff.” She had nothing against male trainers, but female idols and trainers that had been in the industry for such a long time would obviously have different insight on girl groups than their male counterparts.

“This isn’t Genius,” Minseon replied with a snort. “Bae Haneul as the mentor would have been amazing though. She’s been in the industry as long as Yixiu’s been alive.”

“They tried to make her the main mentor, but she wanted to put trainees on the show instead,” Yixiu shrugged. “Not even Mnet can get in her way.”

“True,” Minseon sighed wistfully, “she’s such a badass.”

Yixiu nodded in agreement, “She really is. The trainers are cool though. How often do Kahi and BoA teach dance classes?”

“We’re also getting Jea and Solji as vocal trainers,” Kyungsoon added. Solji would be strict, but the SPY maknae couldn’t wait to learn from someone who knew both failure and success. “Cheetah is teaching rap… this lineup is amazing.” She looked to the older girls, “We have to get sorted together though.”

“Definitely,” Minseon nodded. At the very least, she didn’t want Kyungsoon to be sorted alone. The other girl was incredibly sweet, but she was also incredibly quiet, and Minseon didn’t know how well she would do on her own. “Even if it’s an individual ranking, I’m sure we’ll get put in the same place.”

Yixiu made a face, “The grading scale is kind of… It makes me feel like a piece of meat.”

Minseon sighed in reply, “When we debut, I doubt the netizens will be any kinder to us.”

 

☆

 

“You’re playing guitar for the company evaluations?”

Chanyeon looked up from her tuning to see a girl from… she didn’t know what company looking down at her curiously. Her eyes flicked down to the giant nametag, Big Hit, Kim Taehee. Judging by her clothes, they were probably going to be doing some sort of hip-hop number. “Ah, yeah,” she nodded. “We’re doing two songs, and I’m playing for the first one.”

“Taehee, come on, we’re next!”

“I’m coming!” She glanced towards the rest of her company members before looking back at Chanyeon and giving her a wide grin, “That’s really cool! Good luck!”

“Oh, thanks!” Chanyeon grinned widely at the other girl, glad to know that there were trainees who weren’t too focused on the competition to be nice to everyone else. “Good luck with your evaluation, I think hip-hop concepts are really cool, especially if girls do them.”

“Thanks,” Taehee grinned widely, “Our trainers always say I have the voice for it, but I’m not sure to be honest,” she laughed, her smile wide and bright. “I’ve got to go, but seriously, good luck,” she said again, giving Chanyeon a thumbs up before going over to the rest of her company trainees.

The Genius trainee resumed tuning her guitar, plucking at the strings carefully. She idly wondered what was taking Seyun so long in the bathroom. Other trainees were starting to give her weird looks… It probably wasn’t the best idea to park herself outside the bathroom door, but she knew Seyun would get even more nervous if she didn’t see the other when she came out.

It was a few more minutes before Seyun came out, a pout on her face. “I cut my finger on my nametag,” she showed her pinky to the other girl. “I don’t even know how it happened, but it did.” When Chanyeon beckoned her closer, Seyun sighed as she knelt down next to the other, “Do you think this is a sign that I’m not supposed to be here?”

“Nope, it’s a sign that you are too pure for this cold, dark world,” Chanyeon replied with ease, inspecting the papercut. She reached into her guitar case and took out a band-aid. After gently putting it on Seyun’s pinky, she gave the younger girl a smile, “You’ll be fine, don’t worry about it, Seyunnie.”

Seyun looked at band-aid covered in rilakkuma carefully before frowning at Chanyeon, “What if people are mean?”

“There are mean people everywhere, you just have to ignore them,” Chanyeon said purposefully. “I already met another trainee, and she seemed like a nice person.”

“… Was she really nice?”

“Really nice,” Chanyeon gave a smile as she nodded. “Her company is performing soon if you want to watch her. They’re doing a hip-hop concept. I bet it’s going to be really cool.” Concepts had always been interesting to Chanyeon. Her first concept at Genius had been an idol band, but that had ultimately been scrapped due to trainees leaving the company. After that, she had tried multiple concepts, most of them with Seyun. Although the two hadn’t been in the same projects from the very beginning, the two had met by chance within a week of Chanyeon joining the company and instantly hit it off.

Seyun mulled over Chanyeon’s answer before nodding, “…We can go watch her.”

Chanyeon grinned and put her guitar in its case. Taking Seyun’s hand, she led the younger girl over to the main set so they could watch the performances.

 

☆

 

Lu Huan was more nervous than she was willing to let on. What if her mother was right? What if she was in over her head? She knew she was talented, but that wasn’t everything the trainers would be looking at. They would be looking at the fact that she was Chinese, and she wondered how that would affect things. It wasn’t that she thought she would get an F ranking. That would be too blatant, but what if they were just rude to her simply because she was born somewhere else?

She shook her head, getting rid of the negative thoughts before she stepped out onto the set. Walking to the X, she caught Baehee and Jonghae each flashing her a thumbs up from their places at the top of the pyramid, and she let out a deep breath. She wasn’t alone.

Giving a low bow, she introduced herself, “Hello, I’m Ringleader trainee, Lu Huan.” There was a deafening silence as people took in her name, connecting the dots.

“Lu Huan... you’re Chinese?” Dojung asked. Why he didn’t just look at her profile, Lu Huan couldn’t fathom. “Where are you from?”

“I was born in Beijing, but I study here, at Seoul Arts,” Lu Huan said carefully, focusing on her pronunciation. She knew that it was near flawless, but there was no way people wouldn’t try to pick her apart, and they would start from how well she spoke the language.

 

☆

 

“Wow… there are foreigners here too?” Junmae whispered to Jongmi, eyes wide. “That’s amazing…”

“And terrifying…” Jongmi whispered back. “You’re basically representing your country, forget about painting your company in a positive light. Even if she lives and studies here, that’s not going to make things any easier for her.” She made a face, “She has to be perfect, but not perfect enough for them to think she’s looking for an easy ride.”

 

☆

 

“They’re going to eat her alive,” Kyungsoon frowned in disapproval.

“Wouldn’t you?” Yixiu deadpanned.

Kyungsoon gave the older girl a careful look, “I know you didn’t mean that the way it came out because you’re her friend, but please explain your logic anyway.”

“I get it, and it makes sense no matter how borderline racist it is,” Minseon sighed. “What do you think it looks like when a Chinese girl being represented by a Chinese company comes in and tries to debut in a girl group that’s supposed to showcase the best Korea has to offer?”

“She goes to school here,” Kyungsoon pointed out. “We wanted her in the country one way or another.”

“I know, but think about how terrible netizens can be, Kyungsoon," Yixiu said. "You and Minseon-eonnie might not have a problem with it, and I might think that it would be amazing if either of us made it into the final lineup, but I also know that a lot of people are going to pissed if we even get close…” She nodded to herself, “We both know that.”

“Are you worried about her?” Minseon asked.

Yixiu shook her head, “Jie’s too talented for them to just ignore her.” A smile ghosted across her lips, “They can be as judgmental as they want towards her, but they’re going to eat their words.”

 

☆

 

“What is the training system in China like?” Solji looked at Lu Huan expectantly.

“It’s nothing like the Korean training system at all…” Lu Huan was sheepish. “There isn’t even a training system. You join a company, and you put out music.” The trainer’s expression quickly morphed into annoyance at the reply, and Lu Huan winced. That was a bad answer, a very bad answer. Now, they probably all thought she arrogant, and that wasn’t going to be of any help to her. She tried to back track, “That’s why I’m here though. I’ve always wanted to learn from a traditional training system.”

“Do you honestly think you will be able to join a Korean girl group?” Dojung asked. “You do have visuals that will easily fit this group’s concept, but you’re in a sea of almost one hundred girls with not only visuals, but also the fluency necessary for debut.”

Lu Huan doubted her accent was worse than Yixiu’s was, but she buried the thought under a blinding smile, “I’ll do my best to prove I deserve to debut.”

Her performance wasn’t necessarily hip-hop, but it was something that didn’t suit the fairy-like features of the Chineses girl at first glance. However, Lu Huan still knew she could perform the song without fail. And she did, relishing in the way the faces of the trainers morphed to shock and then mild shame as Lu Huan not only went through performance, but went through it with ease. She smiled, winked, and hit every point she wanted to hit, and when the song was over, she grinned widely as she stood on the X again, looking at the judges in anticipation.

“... I bet you just changed the minds of every single person watching right now.” Dojung chuckled to himself. “This is why you don’t judge people before you know them.”

“Your pronunciation was much better than I expected it to be,” Jea admitted.

“Your dancing was solid, there’s no doubt in your talent.” Boa nodded with a smile.

“Of course there is always room for improvement,” Solji said, “but you did very well for someone without the traditional method of training,”

“Ringleader trainee, Lu Huan... B.”

Lu Huan smiled brightly as she bowed to the trainers, “Thank you.”

 

☆

 

Chanyeon and Seyun bowed together, “We’re the Genius Entertainment trainees.”

“Park Chanyeon and Oh Seyun...” Dojung smiled as he looked them up and down. “You both have very good visuals,” he decided with a nod.

“Good visuals aren’t enough to do well in this competition,” Kahi pointed out. She gave a curious glance to Chanyeon’s guitar. “Are you going to play that or use it as a prop?”

“Uh, play it, I hope that’s okay...” Chanyeon trailed off quietly. It was a weird choice to play guitar, she was well aware. Despite that, their CEO had asked Chanyeon why she and Seyun weren’t performing one of her original songs when they had shown the woman their evaluation performance. It wasn’t that Chanyeon lacked confidence in the songs she had written, she actually loved to play them for her friends and family. Playing them on a broadcast was very new and very different, so she originally opted out, but their CEO was known to make top producers tremble in fear. Taking on an eighteen-year-old was child’s play.

Kahi looked down at their profiles, frowning as she did so, “It says here that you were originally training to be in a band? For two years?” She raised a brow at Chanyeon, “The group we’re creating is going to be a traditional girl group. You need to be able to dance.”

“Um, yeah, I know?”

“Are you telling us that or asking us that?” Cheetah asked in amusement.

“Telling?” Chanyeon squeaked out a guess. This wasn’t going as well as she was hoping it would, not in the slightest. She looked to Seyun, and the younger girl had her lips tightly shut, and her were eyes b with nerves. Chanyeon knew Seyun wanted the evaluation to be over with as much as she did, but they couldn’t do that until they got to their performance. She gave a low bow, “I’ll do my best to represent my company well.”

Dojung laughed loudly, “Well go ahead and show us then.”

The two bowed again, and Chanyeon sat down in the chair provided by the staff. She met eyes with Seyun briefly before taking a deep breath and starting to play. Chanyeon sang the majority of the song, her fingers plucking the strings skillfully. Although she didn’t sing as much as the trainers probably would have liked her to, Seyun’s body naturally moved to the music, and her movements were sharp, yet elegant. The performance played to their strengths, and hid their weaknesses as best as it possibly could. When they finished, Chanyeon set her guitar aside as the music changed, and the two performed a short dance together.

After they performed and the trainees clapped, Chanyeon and Seyun stood before the trainers nervously, waiting to receive their marks. “I’ve never heard the first song before,” Dojung said. “Did you write it, Chanyeon?” She nodded quickly, and he gave an amused smile, “Pretty visuals and a talented songwriter. I think you’ll do well on this show.”

“Thank you,” Chanyeon bowed, flushing at the compliment.

“Your voice has a unique quality to it. High notes might not be your specialty, but high notes aren’t everything,” Jea shrugged. “You have a very sweet voice, and it’s easy to listen to. Your harmonies with Seyun were also spot on.”

“Your dancing needs work though,” Kahi pointed out. “You’re not terrible, but there is an obvious difference in skill.”

Chanyeon winced at the critique, but she nodded in understanding. She knew her dancing wasn’t that great, especially next to Seyun’s. She could work on that though. All that mattered was not getting sorted into F, “Yes, I understand.”

“Oh Seyun?”

“Y-yes?” She looked at the trainers with wide eyes.

“Your specialty is obviously dance,” Boa nodded. “Your movements looked like they were effortless, and you followed Chanyeon’s playing well. You do have room to grow, but as one of the youngest contestants on the show, you should be proud of how well you did.” She smiled at the girl, “Continue to work hard, Seyunnie.”

Seyun bowed, properly flustered, “I will, thank you!”

“Your singing…” Solji looked over her notes before giving Seyun a scrutinizing gaze, “I noticed a distinct difference in the line distribution. Adding onto that, you seem to have a very soft voice, so you need to work on projecting. However, do you want to know what the most common thing I noted about your voice was? Pronunciation.”

When Seyun seemed to shrink at the word, Jea spoke up, “Seyun-ah… do you have a speech impediment?”

She flushed brilliantly in response, her cheeks turning pink as she gave a wary nod.

“I thought I heard it during your introduction,” she nodded in understanding. “Some people will find that endearing, but you still need to work on your pronunciation.” Jea gave her a pointed look, “How can a song convey a message if the words you’re singing aren’t able to be understood?”

“… It can’t be conveyed well,” Seyun resisted the urge to slump in defeat.

“No, it cannot,” Jea shook her head. “You are lacking compared to Chanyeon, but it’s nothing that cannot be fixed. You need to continue to work hard, okay?”

Seyun nodded, her cheeks still pink with embarrassment. “I will.”

“And now for the grades,” Dojung said, “Park Chanyeon… you have a strong musicality, and your vocals are above average, but your dance is below average… C. Oh Seyun, your dance is above average with only more room to grow, but your vocals are below average… C.”

The girls bowed together and left to receive their letters. When they were finally backstage, Seyun slumped in relief, “I never thought I would be so happy to get a C.”

Chanyeon gave her a playful nudge as they received their matching letters, “Is this the first time math genius Oh Seyun has gotten anything less than an A?” At the look the other gave her, Chanyeon gave a laugh. “Seriously, I’m just glad it’s not an F…” Chanyeon said as she stuck the letter onto her name tag. “I don’t know what I would have done if we’d gotten F’s…”

“I really thought I was going to get an F,” Seyun said quietly, smoothing the bold, black C onto her name tag.

“There was no way you were going to get an F,” Chanyeon said with a snort. “Seriously, you dance too well for that, and your voice isn’t even that bad. We’ll totally move up next time.” Seyun merely sighed, and Chanyeon frowned at the lack of a reply. However, she didn’t say anything as the two walked back to their seats.

As they reached the entrance, they paused when a short girl locked in on one of them. “You’re Seyun, right?” She paused before giving a short laugh, “Obviously, you are, that was a dumb question.” She smiled at the other girl, “Your dancing was really good, it was like, so smooth. You looked awesome.”

Seyun stared in surprise before giving a shy smile, “…Thank you.”

“You’re welcome!” Her smile widened into a grin. She looked to Chanyeon, “It was really cool that you played the guitar for the evaluation, and you even composed the song all by yourself! That’s seriously cool,” she nodded earnestly. “I’ve always wanted to play the guitar, but I can only play piano.”

“Thanks,” Chanyeon smiled at the other, her eyes darting down to the name tag the other was wearing. At the Individual Trainee designation, she raised mentally raised a brow. What exactly did that mean? Did she audition to be on the show without a company backing her?

She was going to ask the girl what her nametag meant, but she spoke again, “I should probably get going, my evaluation is soon.”

“Are you on your own?” Chanyeon asked.

“Yep, wish me luck!” The other winked before heading to the waiting area.

 

☆

 

“They were nice… I hope they don’t get eliminated,” Baehee mused quietly as she wandered into the waiting area backstage. She gave a small snort, “I’m saying that like I’m guaranteed a spot in the final lineup.” Baehee knew that she didn’t have anything guaranteed. Even though she had lots of subscribers, they had only followed her because she had covered songs of their favorite idol groups. If anything, they would probably stay loyal to the company of those idols if trainees from that company were on the show. That meant she would have to win people over. Great. 

When she got the signal, Baehee walked to the taped X in front of the trainers. With a low bow, she introduced herself, “I’m Individual Trainee, Byun Baehee.”

Almost immediately, the whispers started, voices wondering what she was doing there if she couldn’t even get into a company. However, Baehee couldn’t bring herself to be bothered.

“Byun Baehee…” Dojung looked over her profile, “You’re on YouTube?”

“Yep,” Baehee nodded with a smile, “I post videos of myself singing and dancing.”

“It says here you have more than half a million subscribers,” he continued, giving her a wink, “It seems like you’re guaranteed a spot in this group, don’t you think?”

“Not at all,” Baehee shook her head.

Cheetah raised a brow, “It’s okay to be humble, but don’t you think that’s a bit much?”

Baehee shook her head again, “Nope.” She gestured to the group of girls behind her, “I sing covers and dance to the choreography of groups that belong to the same companies as the rest of the trainees here.” With a laugh, she continued, “In all honesty, I bet my subscribers will want to support them more than me.”

“Do you think you can turn them to your side?” Boa asked.

“I’m going to try regardless,” Baehee gave a determined nod.

“That’s what we like to hear,” Jea snickered. “Go ahead.”

Baehee took a step back, and gave a nod to the sound engineers. As the instrumental filled the room, eyes widened, and Baehee held back her grin, instead focusing on her performance. It was barely a minute of the song, but Baehee knew that all eyes and ears were going to be on her. It wasn’t the wisest idea to sing Taeyeon’s solo debut, but as Baehee cleared the high note cleanly, she knew she had made the right decision. Continuing to a flawless ending, Baehee had a grin on her face as her own voice came over the speakers and she danced along to the chorus of her “Genie” cover.

If she was being honest, Baehee would admit there was a reason why she had chosen to do that dance. Most of her subscribers had initially come from that cover, so she hoped people watching would recognize her and vote for her… that was, if they aired her evaluation on the show. She wondered how that would work out with over 30 different evaluations, but regardless, Baehee would be bitter if she got cut from the first episode. She deserved at least one clip dammit.

Thoughts aside, she finished the performance with a smile on her face and went to stand before the trainers to the tune of her fellow trainees’ applause. She gave a triumphant grin as she basked in the praise. I’m definitely getting airtime.

“…Wow,” Dojung said. “I will admit that I did not expect that.” He shook his head in amazement, “Are you sure you don’t belong to a company?”

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Baehee nodded, giving an awkward laugh. It was a bit of a sore spot.

“How?” Solji asked. “Your voice alone is solo material.”

“Thank you,” Baehee beamed, bowing gratefully.

“I have no major criticism for your dance,” Boa said. “It has a very well-known point, but you did it with confidence and skill,” she gave Baehee a smile, “Great job.”

“Well, I couldn’t help but notice the theme in your performance,” Dojung gave her an amused look, “You’re a fan of Girls’ Generation?”

Baehee’s eyes lit up, “A really big fan! I love Girls’ Generation, they’re amazing and beautiful and talented and—” she cut herself off, grinning sheepishly, “They’re my favorite idol group.”

“And Taeyeon is your favorite member?” Boa couldn’t help but smile warmly at Baehee’s excitement, “You sang ‘I’ very well. I’m sure she would be impressed if she heard it.”

Baehee bowed once again, her grin becoming even wider, “I really appreciate that, thank you!”

“Well, I think we’re all in agreement here,” Dojung said. “Individual trainee, Byun Baehee… A.”

 

☆

 

Jonghae took it back, she was nervous. This was a terrible idea, and she should have never done this show. Okay, maybe she was over reacting, but now that she was waiting to go on for her evaluation, she didn’t know what she had gotten herself into. However, she took a deep breath and walked over to the small X. With a deep bow, she introduced herself, “I’m individual trainee, Kim Jonghae.”

“Ah… another YouTuber,” Dojung nodded as he looked over her profile. “Do you think your subscribers will support you?” “

I mean, obviously, I hope they do,” Jonghae said, “but I won’t hold it against them if they vote for trainees from the same company as their favorite idols,” she smiled easily. “It says a lot about you if you can get into a company. Auditions aren’t easy,” she shook her head.

“Why do you think you haven’t been able to get into a company?”

“Honestly?” Jonghae asked, “My dancing is… lacking compared to my singing.” When the two dance trainers gave her a dry look, she swallowed thickly. “I’m not that bad… I don’t think I’m that bad, but... yeah, I’ll just get to it...”

She took a few steps back, turning around to wait for the music to play. Like Baehee, she had chosen her song because she wanted people to hopefully see her and remember her. This had been the first cover to get any real traffic, and she still got views and comments whenever IU had a comeback. Hopefully, people would recognize her voice and help her move up in the rankings. As the music played, eyes widened in shock as they looked at her with expectation. She was ready to meet the challenge head on, and although she was sure the choreography wasn’t as smooth as it could have been, her voice was clean, and as she sang the famous three-step high note without a single error, she knew she had made up for any of her dance mistakes.

With a proud smile, she went to stand before the trainers again, waiting for their critiques.

“All these individual trainees are so talented,” Dojung chuckled, “what are going to do with the company trainees that rank below them?”

“You might just have the best voice we’ll hear all day,” Solji praised. “You didn’t show any sign of struggle.”

Jonghae beamed, “Thank you.”

“Your dancing…” Boa began. She chuckled, “I understand what you meant by the gap in your abilities. You’re not hopeless, but you need work in that area.”

The girl was sheepish in response, “I can’t argue with that.”

“Your voice is an A, without a doubt,” Kahi said, “your placement will depend on your dancing… have you ever had a lesson before?”

“Ah, no,” Jonghae shook her head, “I haven’t.”

The trainers took a moment to discuss amongst themselves as Jonghae waited, trying not to so blatantly grip her mic in anticipation.

“Individual Trainee, Kim Jonghae... C,” Dojung announced. “Consider this a chance to improve your dancing.”

“I will, thank you,” She nodded in understanding before bowing and leaving the center space. As long as she avoided being placed in F, she considered that a win in her book.

 

☆

 

The SPY and Crown trainees looked at each other curiously, the mental battle already beginning.

Junmae gave a laugh, that would probably be what the captions would say during the first episode because there was no way their company evaluations wouldn’t be broadcasted as some sort of competition. Crown might have been the biggest company there, but SPY was nothing less than a powerhouse in their own right. The show would probably spend extra time on them, she knew it.

With an easy smile, she looked to Jongmi, “How’re you feeling? Waist okay?”

Jongmi nodded, “Yeah, I’m all stretched out. There’s no way I won’t be able to do my absolute best.”

“Are you hurt?” the two looked up to see another girl staring down at them with wide eyes. Her nametag read ‘SPY, Do Kyungsoon.’

“No,” Jongmi frowned in confusion. Why did the other girl even care? “Uh, who are you?”

The girl didn’t reply, only staring at Jongmi critically before letting out a sigh. She reached into her pocked and took out some heat patches, handing them over to the dancer. “Good luck with your evaluation.” Before Jongmi could reply, she turned away from the Crown trainees and headed over to the other two SPY trainees. Jongmi watched in confusion as she spoke to the two girls while they helped her put on her mic pack, listening to her with warm eyes.

“That was nice of her,” Junmae observed. She looked at the heat patches the girl had given Jongmi, “They’re even the herbal ones, I bet they’re going to feel nice.” She reached for them, “Turn around, I think I can put them on you without messing with your mic.”

“Okay…” Jongmi turned around slowly, still processing the interaction. Why had the girl given her heat patches?

 

☆

 

“Hello, we’re the SPY trainees,” the three bowed together.

“Kim Minseon, Zhang Yixiu, and Do Kyungsoon…” Dojung nodded. “When the three of them came up, I thought Wonder Girls’ Sohee was sneaking in.” He looked to Minseon, “Do you hear that you look like her often?”

Minseon nodded, “Ah… yes, I do.” She laughed, “You’d be surprised how many times I do omona.”

Dojung chuckled in reply, “I can understand why, you’re just as cute as she is.”

Minseon flushed, “Thank you.”

“And we have another foreigner,” he moved onto Yixiu. “Do you think it will make a difference to the viewers that you’re from a Korean company?”

Yixiu thought briefly before replying, “I don’t think it will make much of a difference, no. Either way, I hope the viewers will give us a chance before they judge us.”

“Well said,” Boa nodded. “I and the rest of the trainers will be sure to give you a chance as well.”

Their performance was as clean, as they expected it to be. The three girls had been working together for years, and it showed in their stage. They were considered the top SPY trainees for a reason. Evaluations hadn’t stressed them out since their first year at SPY, and it showed with the way they commanded attention from the trainers and trainees. They weren’t relying on the way they styled themselves or the shock factor of their performance. It was their talent that drew people to look at them, and it was their talent that held their gazes.

When they finished, they stood before the trainees expectantly.

“I think I speak for everyone when I say that you three will have the cleanest performance all day,” Dojung said, still clapping. “You look like you could have already debuted, very professional.”

“Kim Minseon, your voice seems to be naturally high?” Soji read from her notes. “You’re like a songbird, very sweet and easy on the ears,” she nodded. “Kyungsoon as well, you have such smooth vocals.”

“Your voice is kind of like melted chocolate? I couldn’t help but write that down,” Jea said with a laugh. “Your runs were mostly stable, and I’m sure you’ll gain more control over time. I think you’re the strongest vocal of the three.”

“I noted the same thing,” Solji nodded. “You’re young, but you’re very talented.”

Kyungsoon gave a grateful smile, “Thank you so much.”

“Your dancing is also very clean,” Kahi praised. “The same can be said for all of you, but Yixiu especially.” She looked to the Chinese girl, “Your dance was very powerful, but it wasn’t forced or awkward,” she nodded in approval. “It’s nice to see that power in girls these days, especially since there’s been a trend in more innocent concepts late. Whenever you debut, I’m sure you’ll shake things up.”

“Okay… rankings for SPY trainees,” Cheetah read, “Kim Minseon… B. Zhang Yixiu… A. Do Kyungsoon... B.”

 

☆

 

“Kim Jongmi.”

She snapped to attention, wondering what the trainers could possibly want from her. Their performance had gone well, Jongmi knew it had. Instead of giving them the feedback she was waiting for, the trainers were looking at their profiles and talking amongst themselves. She couldn’t guess why they were taking so long to decide on what they were going to rank them as.

“Your profile says here that your specialty is dance… we would like to see more of that from you.”

“I…” she looked at Junmae, trying not to panic, “I didn’t prepare anything else.”

“We can just put anything on then,” Boa smiled cheekily.

Jongmi’s eyes widened, and Junmae looked at her in concern because the trainers didn’t look like they were in any hurry to change their minds. The music started, and Jongmi breathed a sigh of relief. She nodded to herself, and when Junmae noticed this, she took a step back, giving the younger girl space.

When the beat dropped, Jongmi caught it all too easily.

All eyes were on her, and she relished in it. She wasn’t a showoff by any means, but she loved to dance. All she had ever wanted to do was dance. It was her passion, and it showed every time she took the stage. When she finished, she looked at the trainers expectantly, and they were staring at her in shock.

“I don’t think we need anything else,” Boa said. “That was amazing, Jongmi, you should be proud.”

“Thank you,” Jongmi bowed, holding back the wince when her muscles twitched. Standing up straight, she gave a grateful smile.

“Crown trainee Kim Junmae… B. Crown trainee Kim Jongmi… A.” Dojung nodded, giving Jongmi a wink, “Looks like you’re fit to bear the weight of the crown.”

 

☆

 

[TV Daily] ‘Nation’s Nine’ pilot, the battle begins to gain a spot on the nation’s girl group

The standout is definitely the SONE, I heard she sings covers online??

       + So does the girl who sang IU, they’ve done duets together

              + + I can’t believe they’re individual trainees… Oppa will support you both TT-TT

Crown girls really live up to their company

The SPY maknae had a voice like honey, I’m voting for her

Before the girl from China performed, I could see everyone judging her kekeke

I can’t believe one of the Genius girls has a lisp, how does she think she can sing like that?

       +How well do you sing that you’re saying that to a kid?

The SPY and the Crown girls are ready to debut

I’ve been following the SONE for a long time online, her name’s Baehee and she’s really talented

The Chinese girl in SPY is seriously talented, her dance was so powerful

The SONE was so nice to the girl from China, I’m voting for them both

 

☆

 

Boa stepped into the room, “Are we all ready to learn this choreography?”

“Yes!” the trainees chimed out like a chorus.

“You’re all in the middle of the pack right now, but there’s nothing to say that you can’t be moved up to B or even A if you do your best, okay?”

“Yes!”

Boa smiled, “Okay, then let’s all work hard!”

The girls chorused out a reply, and Boa smiled at their enthusiasm. However, things were easier said than done as the group got started. The basics of the choreography weren’t that difficult for them to grasp, but a road block was soon hit: the dance break. Boa winced as she saw the girls struggle through it. “Wait, let’s pause for a second… it’s not easy, is it? Let’s try it again…”

However, the problems weren’t so easily solved.

“Let’s try this again.”

“Again.”

Boa sighed, “This isn’t going as well as I had hoped...” She looked over the trainees, trying to think of a way to break it down even further for the ones who were struggling when she noticed two girls speaking quietly speaking to each other in the back, “Genius trainee… Oh Seyun?”

The trainee froze in her explanation to Chanyeon and looked up from her place in the back as the sea of trainees parted to reveal her to the dance trainer, “Yes?”

“You received a C only because of your vocals,” Boa thought aloud. “Your style also suits instruction… come help me instruct.” 

Seyun’s eyes widened dramatically, “Eh?”

Boa laughed, “Come to the front and be a model as I break down the choreography.” The trainer gestured for the girl to come forward, “You’re already helping one person, so come help the rest, okay?”

Seyun looked to Chanyeon, and the other girl nodded in encouragement, nudging her toward the front. Boa laughed as Seyun slowly came forward, “I won’t bite, don’t worry.”

When the trainee joined her at the front, Boa clapped her on the shoulder, giving her a grin, “Thanks for helping out.” She turned to the trainees, “Okay, I’ll talk you all through it while Seyunnie goes through the movements slowly.”

 

☆

 

“Are you seriously an individual trainee?” Jongmi asked while they were on a break. When she had first seen the other girl perform, she had almost refused to believe there was no company representing her. Now that they had finished their first day of lessons, Jongmi was even more confused because Baehee had gone through them with ease and quickly gained the trainers’ favor. “There’s no way… you’re too good to not be in a company.”

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” Baehee laughed. “No company wants a country bumpkin such as myself.”

Jongmi quirked a brow, “Where are you from?”

Baehee coughed, “Bucheon…”

“That’s like, right outside of Seoul,” the younger girl snorted in reply. “Try again.”

Baehee gave a cheeky smile before shrugged, “Honestly, I have no clue. I don’t have stage fright or anything, so it’s not like I get nervous during auditions. I don’t think my dancing is that bad considering I’ve never taken a lesson before, and I’m really proud of voice.” She made a face, “I guess I’m just not what they were looking for.”

“You’ve never taken a dance class before?” another girl joined them. She gave Baehee a dimpled smile, “Could’ve fooled me.”

Baehee grinned, eyes glancing at her nametag quickly, “Thanks! I really appreciate that.” Shaking her head, she continued, “But yeah, I’ve never taken a lesson before. I used to practice hapkido, and now I teach it, so it’s hard to find the time for classes.”

“You can teach hapkido?” Jongmi gaped. “Are you even human?”

“I’m pretty sure…” Baehee laughed. “But are you even human?” she gave Jongmi a pointed look. “Your freestyle was amazing, it was one of the best dances out of all the trainees and it was done right on the spot. You’re really great too, Yixiu-eonnie!” She looked to the other girl, “Your dance is so powerful, I was blown away during the evaluations.” She smiled, “There are so many talented people on this show, but you guys are definitely two of the best dancers. I could learn so much just by watching you guys.”

Jongmi was properly flustered by the compliment. She had honestly been expecting Baehee to be arrogant after receiving an A rank despite not coming from a company, but the girl was actually pretty friendly. “You’re really talented, Baehee-eonnie. I’m sure companies will be lining up to sign you after the show’s over.”

Baehee grinned brightly in reply, “Thanks, do you want to go over the song with me?” She stood up, stretching slightly, “You too, Yixiu-eonnie!”

“We can never go over it too much,” Yixiu agreed with a shrug.

Jongmi stood as well, ignoring the way her muscles twitched in protest. Once she went over the choreography some more, she would put on a heat patch. She was sure that she could last a few more hours. “Let’s go practice.”